Checking for Understanding

Debbie Cargill
Apr 26, 2010

One goal that educators have for students is that they become responsible, self-directed learners. According to Hattie (2009), self-reported grades have a significant impact on student achievement. In other words, students who can judge their own performance appropriately have greater confidence and increased achievement. When students do not have the confidence to set appropriate goals for themselves, they tend to be less engaged in the learning. For students to take charge of their own learning, however, they must have the tools necessary. These tools include graphic organizers, checklists, rubrics, and feedback.

So - how do you plan instruction in a way that helps students become responsible, self-directed learners? One thing to consider is moving away from the old paradigm of "teach, teach, teach, teach, test" (and hope they got it!) to one in which formative assessment guides instruction. In reality, when we "teach, teach, teach" then test at the end of the lesson, we find ourselves unable or unwilling to re-teach at that point. Usually, there is not enough time to re-teach the whole lesson if some or all students did not "get it." For students, it can become a frustrating experience which further depletes their confidence and efficacy.

The on-going, periodic check for understanding, or formative assessment, can be a key to improving student learning. Formative assessment is intended to make instruction more effective. It provides immediate information about student understanding. Teachers can adjust, modify, or re-direct instruction based on the feedback. Additionally, students can adjust, modify, or re-direct their thinking about a particular concept or skill - becoming more responsible and self-directed learners.

In the LEARNING-FOCUSED Acquisition Lesson plan, we start with the standards to determine what students need to understand at the end of the lesson. Next, we think about what students need to know or do to answer the Lesson Essential Question and show evidence of understanding the concept. Popham (2008) calls this the learning progression. In the Acquisition Lesson plan, we call it Assessment Prompts. These Assessment Prompts give us the information we need to determine whether an adjustment is needed and what that adjustment needs to be. So, instead of waiting until the end of the lesson and trying to fill in the gaps - too little, too late - we are consistently monitoring for learning/understanding throughout. Not only are we improving the delivery of instruction, we are also giving students opportunities for monitoring their own understanding and, ultimately projecting their own successes.

See What Moves You: How to Get the Most from Assessment Prompts and LEARNING-FOCUSED Strategies: Connecting Exemplary Practices in Acquisition Lessons to learn more about Assessment Prompts.

Resources:
Hattie, J.A.C. (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. New York, NY: Routledge.
Popham, W.J. (2008). Transformative assessment. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.